At the end of November in Nigeria at St Mary’s Catholic School in Papiri, in the north-central region: 303 students and 12 teachers were taken away by a group of armed men. Irish Sister Sr Mary Barron, Superior General of the Sisters of Our Lady of Apostles (OLA), the congregation that runs the schools where the kids have been kidnapped gave an update to The Irish Catholic:
“Our Sisters are in close contact with the families. Two of them are the Heads of the two Schools and so know the families very well”, explains Sr Mary , “It is an absolute nightmare of a situation for all concerned but it is the poor families that are suffering the most with their loved ones missing and no news. This school complex ranges from Nursery to Senior Secondary School. Of those missing, 39 are from the Nursery school and 200 from the Primary. 14 from the Secondary and 12 staff”.
Sr Mary was a postulant in Nigeria in 1992 and knows very well the African context where her congregation is deeply rooted. “I have visited this community in Papiri, in 2017. It is a very rural mission. The Sisters started a Dispensary there in the 1970’s particularly for primary health care in the village of Papiri and the surrounding villages. The families who send children to the school there are typical salt of the earth rural people who struggle to make a living and who desire a better future for their children. They make many sacrifices to send their children to the school and very often the entire family is in the boarding house. This is why some families have several children missing”.
In an attempt to make education accessible to this neglected community, Fr Dónal O’Catháin SMA, from Cork, began the school project for the local Diocese and with OLA Sisters as the School manager. St Mary’s School in Newry were very involved in fundraising as was Mr Rowan Hand.
“I know many Irish and Europeans continue to pray” concludes Sr Mary, “and I appeal to the international community not to forget these children but to offer assistance, put diplomatic pressure and above all continue to pray for the safe return of all those still held in captivity”.
